Sunday, 26 June 2011

For my birthday weekend me and the beloved stayed in Chester and met up with a good friend of mine Kay, whilst there we did a spot of window shopping. Chester is so over priced but you have to love there cute one off shabby chic shops. One shop in particular my favourite is the one and only Chateau nice shop with nice prices.

So i came across these in Scarborough i had been looking for a cluster of tables for such a long time but didn't want to pay an arm and a leg for them. I saw these in a 2nd hand shop paid £20 and made my mate drag them all the way home. I wasn't too keen on the colour they looked like they had been soaked in tea bags. So i did my magic and spray painted them white, yet again i still didn't prime these so i think they will need doing again. I need to learn to do a job properly without rushing to get results.

I was really pleased with how they turned out, i did a bit of wear and tear with a bit of sandpaper around the edges.

If you know me well you will know how obsessed I've become with Miss Cath Kidston, I'm hoping it isn't a phase because I've paid for this ladies retirement home. After doing a spot of retail therapy as you do i came across these beauties in Home Sense, couldn't grab a trolley quick enough. I stacked the trolley full and then realised i was being a bit too greedy and carefully put some them back. As much to my amazement a large group of Asian woman flocked around these hidden treasures and took the whole lot. So i was very lucky that day, I've decided not to use them yet as i want to at least look at them before they get attacked by beans on toast.

Over the past few years i have picked many pieces of furniture and decorative items to put in my front room. I tried to achieve a Laura Ashley feel in my lounge mixing the cream and white furniture with classic heavy carved picture frames and mirrors. I'm obsessed with photo frames and never find the time to get my photos developed to fill them.

I used to think having a cream living room would be difficult to keep immaculate i did well up until the baby was born and now its become a haven for toys, walkers and bibs.Im wondering how long it will be before i have to start child proofing my furniture. The table with the lamp was a find at the local tip! my partner witnessed a man throwing it over a wall but before he did i rescued it like a crazy mad woman. It was a dark oak colour so i took a white spray paint in matt and painted it. I wish i had primed it first as its become scratched in numerous places. I think i will sand and re paint this next year. The amoire is the main feature in the lounge it holds most of my glasses and china. Im yet to find a way of child proofing this beauty. I wanted a wardrobe but unfortanatley my house is too small to fit one in so i settled for this display cabinet instead.

So we decided to splash out and treat ourselves to a new and improved bathroom which was long overdue believe me. After many years of house sharing its difficult to update and decorate without invading peoples personal space. After being pregnant last year i knew it was time to decorate this year for the baby. It took me ages to decide what style and colour we was going to choose but after endless trips to home ware stores we had gone from floral to bold and then settled with basic. This was my inspiration.

The thing that stood out the most was the wooden beading along the top of the brick tiles it gave it a different look in the show room they had painted the beading white it looked great but it was not going to be hard wearing under the power shower. We looked at tiled beading but this worked out to be too expensive, so we settled for plastic! Hmm..... it was the only safest option. Back in the 60's Advacado bathrooms were all the rage apparently i took this picture to farrow and ball and picked my version of pale advacado and chose "Mizzle"

This was the bathroom in the demolition stage it was bearable for 3 weeks, the hardest bit was pulling up the old floor tiles. Everything had to be replaced even the bathroom sink. We used Durable Matt paint to make it kiddie proof. I chose black and white floor tiles as white would be too white with all the white brick tiles. Here is the finished look.

Although the light does not do this colour any justice its much brighter in person.

I was browsing online for a dramatic carved mirror and found endless mirrors starting from £99 i picked this one up from a local Tk Maxx should of been £20 which was a bargain to begin with, but noticed a crack at the top. I asked for a discount and paid £12 for this beauty a splodge of no nails and it was fixed. If you dont ask these days you dont get simples.

Saturday, 25 June 2011

I found this dresser on Gumtree its my new hot spot for all things shabby chic, it was the perfect size to fit in my kitchen without taking up too much room. Ive always wanted a kitchen dresser as i have no kitchen storage space to fit all my odd's and sod's. A bargain price of £75 i wasnt too keen on the colour so i decided to paint it with blue emoltion which was left over from my little boys room.

About Me

Welcome to my blog my name is Tracy I became a stay at home mum in 2011 and ever since then I have found a new love in our home.
My partner of 13 years and my son are a huge part of my life, we live in Manchester and enjoy city life.
My love for shabby chic has grown on me over the years and it was only this past year our home has changed dramatically. Being a stay at home mum means spending a lot of time looking at the four walls I wanted to make use of this time a challenge some creative energy into our new family home.
What we couldn't afford we have simply renovated and what I have not found I have simply made myself.
Your home say's more about you more than money ever will so enjoy putting your mark and love into everything you create.